These Nova Scotian Adventures Will Take Your Breath Away

Calling all adventure seekers

Nova Scotia appears to be a tranquil destination, but jump off the beaten path and you’ll find a world of wild adventure that earns the province its nickname of Canada’s Ocean Playground.

Kayaking

With a jagged shoreline that would stretch to England, Nova Scotia has kayaking destinations that will make you jealous of the waves.

I took a trip with NovaShores Adventures that paddled on the heaving tide of the Bay of Fundy along Cape Chignecto Park. Human vanity melts away as you bob at the base of the ancient Parrsboro cliffs, one of the planet’s greatest geological scrapbooks. Expert guides unpack a story of fossils folded into the cliffs that takes you back past the dinosaurs to the first creatures to leave the primordial oceans.

On the Eastern Shore, I paddled with Coastal Adventures past fishing communities and seals as eagles swept overhead. The island tour took us to the faint remains of abandoned European homesteads and evidence of Mi’kmaq people from the many centuries they occupied the islands.

Both companies, and others, offer day trips or longer excursions. No experience is needed.

Tidal Bore Rafting

When the Shubenacadie River collides with the incoming highest tide in the world at the Bay of Fundy, the billions of tons of tidal water smashes the river backwards at a rate of 13 feet (four metres) per second. It’s the equivalent to every river on Earth pouring down the basin.

You, my adventure-loving friend, will be clinging to a tiny inflatable boat that’s heaving over the bucking bronco of the tidal bore. It’s like white-water rapids, but the tidal bore doesn’t move — you do. Several companies offer trips from Maitland.

Hot Air Ballooning

I’ve hot air ballooned over King Tut’s tomb in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings and amid the fairy chimneys of Cappadocia, Turkey, but my journey above the Annapolis Valley was more beautiful. Run by an adventurous husband-and-wife duo, East Coast Balloon Adventures offers champagne flights that rise 1,200 feet (366 metres) for panoramic views of the Minas Basin, the New Brunswick shore, Cape Split and the farmlands and huddled villages of the Valley.

The balloon drifts through the agricultural heartland of Nova Scotia, dropping down to 200 feet (60 metres) for an aerial nature tour of marshy forests (keep your eye open for deer), blueberry fields and vineyards.

Zip lining

For a milder adventure, go zip lining. Tie yourself to a cable and glide majestically over the treetops. You can zip line at Upper Clements Park in the Annapolis Valley, or at Anchors Above Zipline Adventures in French River, Pictou County.

This story originally appeared in Starboard magazine’s Summer 2014 maiden issue.